Stephen Russell
@stephenjrussell.bsky.social
International Labour Standards Lead, TUC, New Dad
Reposted by Stephen Russell
The TUC is supporting the @ituc.bsky.social campaign to free trade union leader Lee Cheuk-yan. Lee was the general secretary of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions until it was dissolved following his arrest for pro-democracy activities. #FreeLeeCheukYan
Defending democracy is not a crime!
Defending democracy is not a crime!
January 21, 2026 at 5:14 PM
The TUC is supporting the @ituc.bsky.social campaign to free trade union leader Lee Cheuk-yan. Lee was the general secretary of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions until it was dissolved following his arrest for pro-democracy activities. #FreeLeeCheukYan
Defending democracy is not a crime!
Defending democracy is not a crime!
Reposted by Stephen Russell
The TUC is supporting the @ituc.bsky.social campaign to free trade union leader Lee Cheuk-yan. Lee was the general secretary of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions until it was dissolved following his arrest for pro-democracy activities. #FreeLeeCheukYan
Defending democracy is not a crime!
Defending democracy is not a crime!
January 21, 2026 at 2:30 PM
The TUC is supporting the @ituc.bsky.social campaign to free trade union leader Lee Cheuk-yan. Lee was the general secretary of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions until it was dissolved following his arrest for pro-democracy activities. #FreeLeeCheukYan
Defending democracy is not a crime!
Defending democracy is not a crime!
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Trade union @unison.org.uk and community action prevented the farright Reform party from closing down/privatising care homes in Lancashire
Farright is never for working people
We can defeat them
Great news and fantastic example what struggle can achieve
@epsu.bsky.social
@teajarc.bsky.social
Farright is never for working people
We can defeat them
Great news and fantastic example what struggle can achieve
@epsu.bsky.social
@teajarc.bsky.social
Reform tried to shut down five care homes in Lancashire. UNISON and the community stood firm and stopped them.
We can defeat Farage and his hateful, anti-worker politics.
Huge well done to UNISON North West & local campaigners, showing the way ✊
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
We can defeat Farage and his hateful, anti-worker politics.
Huge well done to UNISON North West & local campaigners, showing the way ✊
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Lancashire care homes will not shut, Reform UK says - BBC News
Protests had been held over the future of the five care homes that were under review in Lancashire.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 22, 2026 at 6:58 AM
Trade union @unison.org.uk and community action prevented the farright Reform party from closing down/privatising care homes in Lancashire
Farright is never for working people
We can defeat them
Great news and fantastic example what struggle can achieve
@epsu.bsky.social
@teajarc.bsky.social
Farright is never for working people
We can defeat them
Great news and fantastic example what struggle can achieve
@epsu.bsky.social
@teajarc.bsky.social
Former HKCTU General Secretary Lee Cheuk-yan faces trial today for “inciting subversion” (I.e. promoting democratic freedoms)
Hong Kong national security trial of three pro-democracy activists to open
Chow Hang-tung, Lee Cheuk-yan and Albert Ho, who led Tiananmen Square vigils, accused of inciting subversion
www.theguardian.com
January 22, 2026 at 9:26 AM
Former HKCTU General Secretary Lee Cheuk-yan faces trial today for “inciting subversion” (I.e. promoting democratic freedoms)
The TUC is supporting the @ituc.bsky.social campaign to free trade union leader Lee Cheuk-yan. Lee was the general secretary of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions until it was dissolved following his arrest for pro-democracy activities. #FreeLeeCheukYan
Defending democracy is not a crime!
Defending democracy is not a crime!
January 21, 2026 at 2:30 PM
The TUC is supporting the @ituc.bsky.social campaign to free trade union leader Lee Cheuk-yan. Lee was the general secretary of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions until it was dissolved following his arrest for pro-democracy activities. #FreeLeeCheukYan
Defending democracy is not a crime!
Defending democracy is not a crime!
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Nadhim Zahawi and family fled to the UK from Saddam Hussein's Iraq as a child refugee in 1978. Unable to speak English when he arrived, he became a hugely successful businessman and an MP before serving as Chancellor of the Exchequor.
His origin story is the very antithesis of the Reform narrative.
His origin story is the very antithesis of the Reform narrative.
January 12, 2026 at 1:15 PM
Nadhim Zahawi and family fled to the UK from Saddam Hussein's Iraq as a child refugee in 1978. Unable to speak English when he arrived, he became a hugely successful businessman and an MP before serving as Chancellor of the Exchequor.
His origin story is the very antithesis of the Reform narrative.
His origin story is the very antithesis of the Reform narrative.
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Excellent piece by @stephenkb.bsky.social. UK citizenship is a right for those who qualify, not a privilege. If you have it, you are entitled to the full protection of the British state - at home and abroad. What you believe and what you say are entirely irrelevant. Anything else is despotism.
Threatening to strip someone of their citizenship is no joke
That this Labour government seems to find Alaa Abdel Fattah’s predicament a laughing matter is unconscionable
www.ft.com
January 6, 2026 at 9:41 AM
Excellent piece by @stephenkb.bsky.social. UK citizenship is a right for those who qualify, not a privilege. If you have it, you are entitled to the full protection of the British state - at home and abroad. What you believe and what you say are entirely irrelevant. Anything else is despotism.
Reposted by Stephen Russell
"Workers on the ships described physical violence, including hitting or strangulation, wage deductions, intimidation and debt bondage – a system that in effect traps them at sea. Many reported working excessive hours with little rest."
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘Mad fishing’: the super-size fleet of squid catchers plundering the high seas
Every year a Chinese-dominated flotilla big enough to be seen from space pillages the rich marine life on Mile 201, a largely ungoverned part of the South Atlantic off Argentina
www.theguardian.com
January 6, 2026 at 11:34 AM
"Workers on the ships described physical violence, including hitting or strangulation, wage deductions, intimidation and debt bondage – a system that in effect traps them at sea. Many reported working excessive hours with little rest."
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Reposted by Stephen Russell
The TUC joins the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and ITUC-Americas in expressing our ‘absolute and unequivocal rejection’ of the US military attack in Venezuela, and the abduction of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. Yesterday's statement:
TUC General Council statement on Venezuela
The TUC joins the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and ITUC-Americas in expressing our ‘absolute and unequivocal rejection’ of the US military attack in Venezuela, and the abduction of P...
www.tuc.org.uk
January 6, 2026 at 10:09 AM
The TUC joins the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and ITUC-Americas in expressing our ‘absolute and unequivocal rejection’ of the US military attack in Venezuela, and the abduction of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. Yesterday's statement:
We have long supported the calls of Myanmar's unions for UK companies to end complicity with the trashing of labour and other human rights by the junta. This disturbing but essential analysis (by the Business & Human Rights Centre) says exactly why everyone should have listened to them all along.
MYANMAR: Shrinking civic space, rising exploitation: How global fashion brands failed Myanmar’s garment workers under military rule www.business-humanrights.org/en/from-us/b...
Shrinking civic space, rising exploitation: How global fashion brands failed Myanmar’s garment workers under military rule - Business and Human Rights Centre
Check out this page via the Business and Human Rights Centre
www.business-humanrights.org
December 19, 2025 at 4:05 PM
We have long supported the calls of Myanmar's unions for UK companies to end complicity with the trashing of labour and other human rights by the junta. This disturbing but essential analysis (by the Business & Human Rights Centre) says exactly why everyone should have listened to them all along.
Reposted by Stephen Russell
So remember that ECHR has only stopped deportation 13 times! So perhaps Farage, and the Tories want us to leave the ECHR because they want an end to the follow 14 articles!
December 11, 2025 at 9:52 PM
So remember that ECHR has only stopped deportation 13 times! So perhaps Farage, and the Tories want us to leave the ECHR because they want an end to the follow 14 articles!
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Hungary's Viktor Orbán is looking for ways to keep power if he loses next year’s election, Bloomberg reports.
He is considering shifting into the presidency and turning the largely ceremonial office into Hungary’s dominant political post, an idea he raised after meeting Trump.
He is considering shifting into the presidency and turning the largely ceremonial office into Hungary’s dominant political post, an idea he raised after meeting Trump.
December 11, 2025 at 11:23 AM
Hungary's Viktor Orbán is looking for ways to keep power if he loses next year’s election, Bloomberg reports.
He is considering shifting into the presidency and turning the largely ceremonial office into Hungary’s dominant political post, an idea he raised after meeting Trump.
He is considering shifting into the presidency and turning the largely ceremonial office into Hungary’s dominant political post, an idea he raised after meeting Trump.
I'm sure the free speech brigade will be out in force to defend our trade union colleague, CGT leader Sophie Binet, who is facing an investigation - prompted by a complaint by an employers' association hilariously named 'Ethic' - for calling CEOs quitting France "rats leaving the ship."
Sophie Binet annonce être mise en examen après avoir comparé des grands patrons à des "rats" qui "quittent le navire" - ICI
Invitée sur France Inter ce mardi, Sophie Binet, secrétaire générale de la CGT, annonce sa mise en examen pour avoir comparé des grands patrons menaçant de délocaliser à des "rats" qui "quittent le na...
www.francebleu.fr
December 10, 2025 at 3:35 PM
I'm sure the free speech brigade will be out in force to defend our trade union colleague, CGT leader Sophie Binet, who is facing an investigation - prompted by a complaint by an employers' association hilariously named 'Ethic' - for calling CEOs quitting France "rats leaving the ship."
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Remember: if a legal opinion is sound then it matters not how “great” or “distinguished“ the lawyer is.
And if it is not sound, it is not saved by the lawyer being “great” or “distinguished“.
And if it is not sound, it is not saved by the lawyer being “great” or “distinguished“.
Apparently, Stephen Miller cosplayed a “many great legal scholars” last night.
November 23, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Remember: if a legal opinion is sound then it matters not how “great” or “distinguished“ the lawyer is.
And if it is not sound, it is not saved by the lawyer being “great” or “distinguished“.
And if it is not sound, it is not saved by the lawyer being “great” or “distinguished“.
Reposted by Stephen Russell
“It broke my heart, that was my savings towards a new car,” one woman who paid Milne tens of thousands of pounds told us. “He has just wiped me out.”
Who is Andrew Milne - the solicitor sending "very aggressive" letters to Sheffield homeowners?
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk/a-london-law...
Who is Andrew Milne - the solicitor sending "very aggressive" letters to Sheffield homeowners?
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk/a-london-law...
A London lawyer bought hundreds of Sheffield freeholds. Then the ‘very aggressive’ letters arrived
Exclusive: The Tribune can reveal that Andrew Milne has threatened leaseholders with high court action. It ‘broke my heart’ one woman says
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk
November 6, 2025 at 3:20 PM
“It broke my heart, that was my savings towards a new car,” one woman who paid Milne tens of thousands of pounds told us. “He has just wiped me out.”
Who is Andrew Milne - the solicitor sending "very aggressive" letters to Sheffield homeowners?
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk/a-london-law...
Who is Andrew Milne - the solicitor sending "very aggressive" letters to Sheffield homeowners?
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk/a-london-law...
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Farage gets voted down on leaving the ECHR… for now.
Ed Davey quite rightly tears a strip off him.
But really, the corrupt leader of a racist party threatening to remove our protection from abuses of power by our own government, should be the biggest red flag going.
www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...
Ed Davey quite rightly tears a strip off him.
But really, the corrupt leader of a racist party threatening to remove our protection from abuses of power by our own government, should be the biggest red flag going.
www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...
Nigel Farage loses major vote as he's accused of 'making career by damaging UK'
Nigel Farage's call for the UK to leave the European Convention for Human Rights (ECHR) was voted down by MPs, with Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey branding it "un-British"
www.mirror.co.uk
October 29, 2025 at 7:33 PM
Farage gets voted down on leaving the ECHR… for now.
Ed Davey quite rightly tears a strip off him.
But really, the corrupt leader of a racist party threatening to remove our protection from abuses of power by our own government, should be the biggest red flag going.
www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...
Ed Davey quite rightly tears a strip off him.
But really, the corrupt leader of a racist party threatening to remove our protection from abuses of power by our own government, should be the biggest red flag going.
www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Asylum seekers, housed in hotels in Manchester, are reaching out in their own words to address the concerns of the local community.
Please take a minute to read their letter, & share it with the people in your life who need to hear the truth about the people they are protesting.
Please take a minute to read their letter, & share it with the people in your life who need to hear the truth about the people they are protesting.
October 27, 2025 at 11:41 AM
Asylum seekers, housed in hotels in Manchester, are reaching out in their own words to address the concerns of the local community.
Please take a minute to read their letter, & share it with the people in your life who need to hear the truth about the people they are protesting.
Please take a minute to read their letter, & share it with the people in your life who need to hear the truth about the people they are protesting.
Reposted by Stephen Russell
‘A colony of the US’: Argentinians contemplate future after Trump-backed Milei coasts to victory
‘A colony of the US’: Argentinians contemplate future after Trump-backed Milei coasts to victory
Big win leaves many wondering if result reflects genuine support for president or corrosive US influence
www.theguardian.com
October 29, 2025 at 11:54 AM
‘A colony of the US’: Argentinians contemplate future after Trump-backed Milei coasts to victory
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Federal workers keep America’s national parks beautiful. Threatening to fire thousands of those workers will destroy these national treasures and leave working families—who are already hurting from the government shutdown—scrambling to pay their bills. https://bit.ly/48Hlf3M
See where Interior is planning to lay off 2,000 employees
The newly revealed details lay out only a portion of the total expected RIFs.
www.govexec.com
October 22, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Federal workers keep America’s national parks beautiful. Threatening to fire thousands of those workers will destroy these national treasures and leave working families—who are already hurting from the government shutdown—scrambling to pay their bills. https://bit.ly/48Hlf3M
Reposted by Stephen Russell
The very fact that MI5 - and the security services generally - are accountable to our domestic courts flows from the ECHR decision of Malone.
One of many ways that Convention has benefitted our legal order.
One of many ways that Convention has benefitted our legal order.
October 20, 2025 at 7:28 AM
The very fact that MI5 - and the security services generally - are accountable to our domestic courts flows from the ECHR decision of Malone.
One of many ways that Convention has benefitted our legal order.
One of many ways that Convention has benefitted our legal order.
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Pledges to cut regulation are constant unless there's just been a disaster/failure. Then everyone calls for more regulation.
The constants of British policy over my life:
- pledges to cut red tape/regulation
- talk of a ‘contributory welfare system’
- calls for more ‘on the beat’ police officers
The cyclical one: a pledge to cut backroom health/education staff & promises of more support staff to free up frontline staff
- pledges to cut red tape/regulation
- talk of a ‘contributory welfare system’
- calls for more ‘on the beat’ police officers
The cyclical one: a pledge to cut backroom health/education staff & promises of more support staff to free up frontline staff
Nostalgia time for policy geeks - the Red Tape Challenge is back!
www.gov.uk/government/c...
www.gov.uk/government/c...
October 21, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Pledges to cut regulation are constant unless there's just been a disaster/failure. Then everyone calls for more regulation.
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Why does Nigel Farage want us to be like Argentina?
October 16, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Why does Nigel Farage want us to be like Argentina?
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Just brace for what we will see in terms of US interference in European electoral politics soon
Another $20 billion. That is the face you make when you heist the US taxpayers for $40 billion two weeks before your midterm elections from the most corrupt America Last regime in history.
October 16, 2025 at 6:25 AM
Just brace for what we will see in terms of US interference in European electoral politics soon
Reposted by Stephen Russell
NEW
What the Chinese spying case witness statements reveal
The Crown Prosecution Service appears to have made at least one serious error, while the government's position now makes sense
By me
emptycity.substack.com/p/what-the-c...
What the Chinese spying case witness statements reveal
The Crown Prosecution Service appears to have made at least one serious error, while the government's position now makes sense
By me
emptycity.substack.com/p/what-the-c...
October 16, 2025 at 9:54 AM
NEW
What the Chinese spying case witness statements reveal
The Crown Prosecution Service appears to have made at least one serious error, while the government's position now makes sense
By me
emptycity.substack.com/p/what-the-c...
What the Chinese spying case witness statements reveal
The Crown Prosecution Service appears to have made at least one serious error, while the government's position now makes sense
By me
emptycity.substack.com/p/what-the-c...
Reposted by Stephen Russell
Neither Labour nor the Conservatives have made Farage bear any of the political costs of Brexit that they themselves have endured in terms of intra-party divisions and wider public discontent.
July 3, 2025 at 9:20 AM
Neither Labour nor the Conservatives have made Farage bear any of the political costs of Brexit that they themselves have endured in terms of intra-party divisions and wider public discontent.